The SN House in Londrina, Brazil was built to appear as if it were floating in mid-air. The main part of the house is a single-span volume that hovers over a large, shaded outdoor living area that is perfect for large family gatherings by the pool. Designed by Studio Guilherme Torres, the luxurious and passive home makes the most of its site by using the sun to heat water, louvers to shade the interior and collected rainwater for toilets and irrigation.

The lot on which this house is built is a slope with a change of about 3 meters towards the back. The architects decided to build the house jutting out of the incline so that the cantilever could create a large shaded space underneath.“I’ve docked the house on the slope” says the Guilherme Torres, “By doing that, I’ve released the space underneath it to the garden, the pool and the living rooms.” A large slab of prestressed concrete containing cables of high-strength steel, driven and trapped inside, is what allows this to work. Without any pillars or supports, the main volume has straight, pure and simple forms.

In total, the residence is 840 sq meters with four bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, a large dining room, and multiple living rooms both inside and out. Built around a large courtyard and swimming pools, the house also makes use of its outdoor living space eliminating the need for more conditioned space. Multiple living spaces, especially the outdoor ones allows the extended family to visit on the weekend and enjoy the pool.

Local labor and materials were used exclusively for this project, which is made from decorative stone, exposed concrete and white masonry. Oriented for passive solar design, orientation and shade play a major role in maintaining the interior comfort. Louvers on the main volume shield the bedrooms from overheating, but still let in daylight. This also encourages natural ventilation through and across the space to keep it cool. Rainwater is harvested from the roof and reused within the house, while a solar hot water system heats water for the faucets, showers and the pool.